10 - 16 September

As we begin to feel the chill, especially in the early morning, it’s a reminder that autumn is soon creeping up on us!

It’s been another busy week, but before I get into the details I would like to highlight a couple of recent incidents from last week.

On Thursday (6 September) afternoon, I was alerted to a group of Gypsies and Travellers who had illegally occupied the Hounslow and Barnes Hockey Club car park at Dukes Meadows, by cutting off the locks and removing the barriers. With swift action between the Police, Parkguard and our Enforcement Officers we ensured the trespassers had left the site within 24 hours. Despite this quick turnaround, they still left behind an enormous amount of building waste - see video This will cost the residents of the borough almost £10k in clean-up costs.

I urge residents to only use bona fide contractors to remove household materials/building waste, and if you are aware of any illegal fly tipping activity, please contact the Council immediately so that we can take action. The Council offers residents bulky waste collection service, as well as the facilities at Space Waye Re-use and Recycling Centre for residents and businesses to dispose of their rubbish properly. So, there is simply no excuse for this type of ant-social behaviour and criminal activity in our borough.

In another truly horrific incident, you may have seen a social media video of a nasty attack on a young person, which allegedly took place in Feltham. It’s important that we highlight these terrible instances to send a strong message to the perpetrators – any form of anti-social behaviour is simply unacceptable and there will be consequences. If you have any information regarding the assault, please contact the Police.

On a brighter note, I am delighted we have reached the big 10,000 follower mark on Twitter. To celebrate this milestone the lucky 10,000th follower will be contacted so we can reward them with a £50 shopping voucher. Thank you for your valued support and we look forward to reaching the next milestone with you.

It was a reasonably quiet day in the office on Monday. I met with colleagues from the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Alan Adams, Interim Chief Executive, to discuss how we further develop the integration initiatives between CCG and social services. I also attended a briefing led by Cllr Lily Bath, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing, to discuss in detail the current housing need in the borough, which as you know is chronic due to the housing crisis in London.

On Tuesday morning, I went out to meet residents of Lionel Road North with officers, to address their concerns of a number large trees affecting their light. Later in the day, I with Alan Adams, Interim Chief Executive for his one to one meeting, this is his first week at the helm and he’s doing a great job. I also met with senior officers from the London and Quadrant Housing Association, who are very interested in helping us meet our housing target. My last meeting of the day was a Cabinet meeting and I’m pleased there is an agreed approach to support the Scouting Association in Hounslow. It has been a very difficult time for everyone, including the scouts. You can read the full report here.

On Wednesday, I attended the wedding of Maria Pedro, the former Deputy Lieutenant for Hounslow, who as you may be aware retired from her role due to ill health recently. Maria has been very passionate about Hounslow, and a great advocate for disadvantaged and community groups across Hounslow. I’d like to congratulate Maria on her wedding and wish her well for the future.

In the evening I attended our Labour Party Branch Meeting AGM – always an interesting affair.

On Thursday I had a full day of back to back meetings with officers from across the Council. There are lots of exciting projects in the pipeline from housing to potholes, so keep your eyes peeled.

Today, I will be out of the office meeting with residents across the borough to discuss their concerns.

On Saturday I’ve been invited to the first rugby match of the season being played at the new Grasshoppers RFC grounds in Osterley, the club moved from MacFarlane Lane to allow for a new school to be built, the Bolder Academy. The Grasshoppers are playing local rivals Chiswick RFC – I’m looking forward to it. Good luck to the Bees as well for Saturday, they’ll be playing against Wigan Athletic.